I grew up going to camp every single summer. Some summers, I was at camp every single week. Or it at least felt like every single week. This is why I loved it so so much:

1. I made life-long friends.

This girl and I met at High Sierra Scholarship Camp (previously AWANA High Sierra Scholarship Camp). She went to Bible college and met one of my other friends. They started dating. She worked at the same camp that I did this summer and we lived in the same house. She helped me through a break up and both of my dogs passing away. Her and her boyfriend, who was also my friend, are now engaged and I am going to be a bridesmaid in their wedding, as I am sure that when the time comes for me to get married, she will be a bridesmaid in my wedding! If this friendship won't last a lifetime, then nothing else in life will make sense.

2. I'm not afraid to get dirty.

Another HSSC friend. At HSSC, high schoolers played night games. We would go out into the forest, counselors would have squirt guns and there were a few different games that we would play throughout the years. We would be COVERED in mud by the end of the night, in which showers were very much appreciated.

3. I went on some awesome hikes that I can brag about.

This specific hike, we call "Teapot". There is no trail, rather just a destination. At the destination is a teapot (pictured) and a book to write your name in. I've done this hike twice. This picture is from the second time I went and I had mono when I went on this hike (I was sick all summer and we never knew why, but that's another story). I've also been to high mountain lakes, secret swimming holes and deserted trails with lovely waterfalls at the end.

4. I bonded with my family.

There was one week that we went to camp with my dad's family as our summer camping trip. That was one that was extremely memorable, seeing as my mom and I were running on a trail in the middle of a giant high sierra thunderstorm (and the same summer that I had mono but didn't know it).

My cousins from my mom's side also went to this camp with my brothers and I. My parents happened to be the directors of the Junior/Junior High Camp this one specific year, so all of us were there and spending time together. This is another week that I will forever remember.

5. It also helped me bond with my sister-in-law.

Her and my brother actually met at HSSC, too! Fun fact: I knew her before he did :P

6. It made me more extroverted.

Someone who was a counselor who has known me since I was 4 years old told my mom, after my first year of camp, "She's not this shy little girl anymore! She's this giggly, loud, adorable young woman!"

If only she knew what camp would do for me in the coming years.

7. It brought me out of the shadow of my older brothers.

Don't get me wrong, I love being their little sister. For so long, it defined who I was. I heard, "Oh, you're Trent's little sister!" and, "Oh, you're Evan's little sister!" There was one time when I heard, "Oh, you're Eirena's brother!" THAT WAS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE.

By my last year of HSSC, I had a wonderful established group of friends that I could rely on and adults that I admired.

8. It taught me that my cousin and I can clean a whole bathroom in an hour.

It would give us time together! As we cleaned, we would sing songs that the whole camp sung around the campfire at nighttime, talk about the night games that we played every night, discuss the rules of card games we would play throughout the day, talk about boys and talk about God. We would finish cleaning our bathroom before the bigger group of girls (and boys) would finish their chores, giving us time to play Speed against each other or grab a snack from the mess hall.

9. It taught me to invest in people who are younger than me.

Not only do you have someone to share experiences and wisdom with, but you have someone who can relate to your child-like heart and show you what it means to be carefree. Then, when they start growing up, you get to see who they become and you become proud because of the Mama Bear you were to them.

10. It grew my personality and shaped my faith to get me prepared for college.

Camp will forever be there place where I met my guy best friend (who my mother calls "Eyebrow Guy" and hasn't even been to my house yet when I've been to his at least 4 times...), the place where I made my faith my own, the place that gave me a sense of what it means to be a Christian, the place that taught me how I can love others better, the place that taught me that God is love and has the power to do amazing things, the place where I reunited with childhood friends for a whole week without anything tearing us apart, the place where I realized that I could see myself working for the rest of my life to give back what it gave to me.